August Floodplain Management and Insurance Training

Check out these upcoming webinars and info related to floodplain management and NFIP flood insurance. Feel free to forward these to other staff.

Back2Basics: Dos and Don’ts in the Regulated Floodplain, Offering 2

Thursday, August 24, 2023, 11 am-noon Central In this training, complex regulations will be boiled down to the basics of what you can and cannot do in the FEMA-identified Special Flood Hazard Areas. Regulations can be complex for developers, surveyors, realtors, and the general public to understand—hey even for floodplain administrators and FEMA staff—so communicating clearly about what is allowed and not allowed is important. One hour of Continuing education credit is approved for this training through the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) for Certified Floodplain Managers (CFMs®).

Register

New FEMA Elevation Certificate and Dry Floodproofing Certificate Released

The new Elevation Certificate and Dry Floodproofing Certificate for Non-Residential Structures forms have been released and are available here.

Note that there is no grace period for the old form. Any EC form signed and dated as of July 7, 2023 must be on the latest FEMA EC Form. See FEMA's Write Your Own Bulletin on the new forms including an attachment revising the October 2022 NFIP Flood Insurance Manual.

Note: If you are having trouble opening the forms, save the documents to your computer and open them with a PDF viewer. If you still get a delay message, click to enable all features. If you are still having trouble, please email nfipunderwritingmailbox@fema.dhs.gov. 

Attend a free FEMA webinar hosted by ASFPM: Changes to the Floodproofing Certificate Form, Thursday, August 10 at 10 am Central. REGISTER

Community Rating System (CRS) Webinars

The nationally-run CRS Webinar Series provides both live and on-demand training to communities that are not yet participating in the Community Rating System, local government staff who are new to the CRS, and those with experience in the program. To register, click below and enter "CRS" into the search bar. Sessions typically offer 1 CEC for CFMs®.

FEMA Elevation Certificates
Tuesday, August 15, 2023, noon-1:30 pm Central

CRS & Substantial Damage Properties Management Plans
Wednesday, August 16, 2023, noon-1 pm Central

Register

FEMA Region 6 mapping program's training

Virtual Brown Bag: The Risk Communication Guidebook for Local Officials

Tuesday, August 29, noon-1 pm Central Join this webinar to learn about the Risk Communication Guidebook for Local Officials which details best practices, strategies, tool and insights to support communications and outreach needs during the Risk MAP process. The Guidebook is designed to arm you with a core understanding of what happens during each phase of Risk MAP. The Guidebook lists actions that YOU, as a community, can take at each step. These actions can increase your citizens’ awareness of flood risk and guide their efforts to reduce that risk. One hour of continuing education credit is approved for this training through ASFPM for CFMs®. 0.1 Credit Hour is also available for Professional Engineers.

Register

Two-part Key Fundamentals of Flood Insurance Webinar

This webinar is a two-part course on FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program. It brings participants the latest information on the NFIP, including instruction on the NFIP’s pricing methodology. Created for insurance agents with CE varying by state, others are welcome to attend, but CE credit is not available. Attendees must complete both sessions in order to cover all topics required by the Flood Insurance Reform Act (FIRA) of 2004.

• 8/15:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/16:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

• 8/16: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/17: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

• 8/22:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/23:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

• 8/23: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/24: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

• 8/29:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/30:   2 p.m. -   4 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

• 8/30: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 1) REGISTER
  8/31: 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT (Part 2) REGISTER

Click here to view more offerings.

FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) Webinars and Info

Training from FEMA Region 6 HMA

• Drainage Subapplications and Closeout Webinar
  Wednesday, August 9, 2023, 2-4 pm Central, REGISTER
• Drainage Subapplications and BCAs Webinar
  Wednesday, August 23, 2023, 2-4 pm Central, REGISTER
• You can also view FEMA Region 6 Hazard Mitigation Assistance webinars at this YouTube Playlist. 

Information from FEMA's National HMA Program

• BRIC Direct Technical Assistance in Fiscal Year 2023 Webinar
  Thursday, August 17, 2023, 1-2:30 pm Central, REGISTER
• FMA Localized Flood Risk Reduction Projects Webinar
  Thursday, August 24, 2023, 1-2:30 pm Central, REGISTER
• Click here to view recorded webinars. 
• FEMA is seeking feedback on the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program. This is an opportunity for stakeholders to share their thoughts and experiences with FEMA following the initial launch of the program. Feedback can be provided through survey and email. The deadline for all submissions is August 16, 2023. Click here for information on how to submit your feedback.

View and Share Flood Insurance Claims Data for Your Area

FEMA produced a map on Floodsmart.gov that shows flood claims across the United States since 1980. Viewers can sort historical flood insurance claims in every state, country and territory. Use the data to help property owners in your community understand the value of flood insurance and the average NFIP claim by dividing the dollar amount of claims paid by the number of NFIP claims paid. Flood insurance is recommended in all flood zones--even outside of the Special Flood Hazard Area. Recommend that your residents contact an insurance agent to discuss flood coverage. 

State and Association Resources Available

View resources and upcoming training provided by the State NFIP Coordination office at the Texas Water Development Board.

View floodplain management resources, training, and more from the Texas Floodplain Management Association, here. Consider attending the 2023 TFMA Technical Summit in Denton, Texas, September 12-15.

No-Match Funding Available to Update Your Codes or CRS Program

Click here to learn more about the Texas GLO Resilient Communities Program (RCP), which may provide up to $300,000 to help your community adopt modern, flood resistant codes. No local match needed.

NOAA Climate Resilience Regional Challenge, Competitive Funding Opportunity

Approximately $575 million is available for projects that build the resilience of coastal communities to extreme weather (e.g., hurricanes and storm surge) and other impacts of climate change, including sea level rise and drought. The focus of this grant program is on collaborative approaches to achieving resilience in coastal regions. Proposed projects should address risk reduction, regional collaboration, and equity, and build enduring capacity for adaptation.

The First Step: Outline your proposed project and submit a letter of intent. NOAA will invite selected applicants to submit a full application. Details regarding the letter of intent and the application are provided within the funding announcement.

Due Dates: For the letter of intent: Monday, August 21, 2023. For the full application: Tuesday, February 13, 2024.

Did you know? You can access past FEMA Region 6 Floodplain Monthly trainings at one site. Click here to explore past topics. Bookmark the link, make sure to scroll to the bottom and click next to view more listings, and check back for new additions. Continuing education credits are not available for viewing past recordings.